title: Controllable synthesis of graphene-based titanium dioxide nanocomposites by atomic layer deposition.
abstract: Atomic layer deposition (ALD) was used to synthesize graphene-based metal oxide nanocomposites. This strategy was fulfilled on the preparation of TiO(2)-graphene nanosheet (TiO(2)-GNS) nanocomposites using titanium isopropoxide and water as precursors. The synthesized nanocomposites demonstrated that ALD exhibited many benefits in a controllable means. It was found that the as-deposited TiO(2) was tunable not only in its morphologies but also in its structural phases. As for the former, TiO(2) was transferable from nanoparticles to nanofilms with increased cycles. With regard to the latter, TiO(2) was changeable from amorphous to crystalline phase, and even a mixture of the two with increased growth temperatures (up to 250 °C). The underlying growth mechanisms were discussed and the resultant TiO(2)-GNS nanocomposites have great potentials for many applications, such as photocatalysis, lithium-ion batteries, fuel cells, and sensors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, N6A 5B8, Canada.
authors.forename: Xiangbo
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.forename: Dongsheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Geng
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Ruying
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xueliang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D003460:Crystallization / Q000379:methods*; D006108:Graphite / Q000737:chemistry*; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry; D008422:Materials Testing; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D010316:Particle Size; D013499:Surface Properties; D014025:Titanium / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances; C009495:titanium dioxide; D006108:Graphite; D014025:Titanium